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Review: 'Sin City: A Dame to Kill For' is quite good till its final chapter

By Randy MyersSan Jose Mercury News contributor

Posted:
08/22/2014 12:00:00 AM PDT

Updated:
08/25/2014 09:20:40 AM PDT

One of the most agonizing challenges screenwriters face is pulling off that clever, killer ending. Especially critical are those closing lines, words that wrap up things succinctly, definitively, hauntingly.

"Why, she wouldn't even harm a fly," from "Psycho," and "Forget it, Jake; it's Chinatown," are classic parting shots, ones that still stick in our collective craws.

The gory, kinky and visually astonishing "Frank Miller's Sin City: A Dame to Kill For" lacks the crucial sucker punch, all but sputtering out when it should be slamming things home with a good kiss kiss, bang bang. That missing line hobbles an otherwise gripping neo-noir, especially since Miller, who not only cooked up the screenplay but also wrote the R-rated comics the film adaptations are based on, is all about paying homage to a genre that's noted for its jarring endings.

Miller's graphic novel series, which debuted in 1991, is based on the intertwining storylines of characters that range from powerful prostitutes to a power-hungry politician, all living and dying in Basin City, aka Sin City. Both the books and movies are bathed in seamy pulp fiction-film noir shenanigans.

In this sequel, as well as the 2005 film that preceded it, these tales are strung together rather seamlessly.

Fortunately, three out of the four tales in "Sin City: A Dame to Kill For" deliver aces thanks to Miller, his co-director, Robert Rodriguez, and a cast that includes "Sin City" newbies Eva Green and Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

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The first story, "Just Another Saturday Night," reunites us with the violence-prone Marv (Mickey Rourke, perfect for the part). With his scarred face and brutish body, Marv's an intimidating presence. In the opener, he makes mincemeat out of college boys and hangs out at the bar where sexy stripper Nancy (Jessica Alba) glowers at the despicable Senator Roark (Powers Boothe, exceptional as one of the cruelest villains to ever grace the screen).

Nancy, played by Alba with precious little dexterity except when she's gyrating like a maniac, is lusting for vengeance at the dirty scoundrel Roark, who played a part in the death of her lover, John Hartigan (Bruce Willis). To understand more about how his death went down, rent the first film.

Later, Nancy's tale of seeking just deserts -- "Nancy's Last Dance," one of two original tales -- closes the film blandly. It features Bruce Willis, relegated to play a ghostly apparition as Hartigan.

The other new chapter written exclusively for the film, "The Long Bad Night," is leagues better, a crafty, ultraviolent and gripping narrative about a dandy-esque gambler (Gordon-Levitt) who thinks he can one-up Roark. Place your bets on who will come out the victor. Gordon-Levitt's likability benefits the film, as we're invested in his cocky character's fate. "Bad Night" taps into the true spirit of noir, replete with satisfying twists and a fleet-footed finale. It also gets a huge assist from the presence of Christopher Lloyd as a drug-addicted doctor and Lady Gaga as a helpful waitress.

The best story remains, appropriately, it's longest one, "A Dame to Kill For." One of Miller's most popular tales, it smolders and slithers mostly because of actress Green, whose go-for-broke performance in "300: Rise of an Empire" overpowered every buff, sweaty and shirtless warrior around her.

Green's Ava Lord enters a room with the steely eyes of a viper, oozing sensuality. She sinks her fangs into Dwight McCarthy (Brolin, upping his hunk factor), a PI snapping photos of sexual indiscretions. McCarthy, played by Clive Owen in the first "Sin City," gets drawn into Ava's web, as do a detective (Christopher Meloni) and his partner (Jeremy Piven). The results are a huge body count and splashes of color to make Green all the more vivid. She's deadly, and Green appears to be having great fun playing her.

Like every chapter in this film, the otherworldly visuals are revolutionary, and the 3-D only enhances that experience. While "Sin City: A Dame to Kill For" does have its problems, technical achievements are not one of them.

Does this artistry help us overlook the anticlimactic finale? Not enough. Yet I still recommend "Frank Miller's Sin City: A Dame to Kill For" -- since three out of four isn't bad at all.

But that comes with a caveat. Anyone offended by graphic violence, kinky sex and eyefuls of nudity should stay away. But for those who like their fiction hard-boiled like a rock and naughty to the bone, expect to be pleased, if not thoroughly satisfied.